Tag Archives: research

Listen, I’ve seen some gory things in all the research I’ve done for writing, so don’t go blaming me that this week’s FridayLinksforWriters: Quirky Research Sources #4 goes a little dark. Fact is, most writers joke that they’d get more than a raised eyebrow if anyone caught a peek at the things googled in the name of research. And this week’s collection of odd sources I’ve come across in my reading goes just that dark.

Whether you need to know the actual metabolism of an overdose, or the bureaucratic processes a body goes through after death, there’s a link here for you. Half a dozen relate to journalism in conflict zones. And, if you’re squeamish, no worries: there’s one on art restoration and a couple on our community connection to the bodega, and one to help you track extreme weather happening at the time your story takes place. None of that fits the focus of your work? Find links to the last 3 Quirky Resource posts at the foot of this article, for more.

As you jump in, feel free to share your own favorite research links, or let us know what you’re working on this week, so we can cheer each other on. Have a great writing week, all.

Journalist Winnie Hu writes about the training and process of forensic pathologists in this 2016 piece on the Forensic Pathology Fellows Program, which she says “helped resurrect a long-troubled agency, the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner.”

It’s a shame that this article by the Irish Timeswas triggered by the discovery of dismembered remains in the Wicklow Mountains. For anyone writing crime or mystery in the Irish Republic, it traces some of the bureaucratic and forensic processes that follow to resolve the crime.

Motoko Rich’s New York Times article reveals a funeral trend in Japan, provoked by changes in community lifestyles and a cremation industry unable to keep up with demand. Well-researched, it is interesting in revealing funereal traditions of a crowded island nation, Buddhist burial traditions, and demographic trends.

Sure, Setting’s Great, But What Drought, Fire or Storm of the Century Was Going On?

Reading Tana French, I noticed the million different ways she describes rain in Ireland. Living in Florida, I know how extreme weather is a part of seasonal culture. Visiting a friend overseas, I remember the drama of hiking through acres of trees blown flat by a hundred-year storm, climbing thick trunks suspended 10 and 20 feet off the ground… Got me thinking: what major weather events were taking place the year or months surrounding my novel? Sure enough, there’s a site for that. The “Global Hazards” page of NOAA allows you to search major weather events worldwide, by year and month. When reduced to simple ledes, I could quickly see how NOAA’s brief reports of massive weather events — from a tornado wiping out Happy, TX, to droughts, wildfires and monsoons — could inspire story ideas.

I was gripped by this long read by war journalist C.J. Chivers in New York Times Magazine, which peels back layers to the story of the service, crime, PTSD and substance abuse treatment, and sentencing of Marine Corps veteran Sam Siatta. Chivers’ research is eye opening into training, engagement, battlefield protocol, citizens vs. targets, returning to civilian life, subtle development of PTSD (and alcohol dependency), as well as phases of trial, sentencing, prison and appeal. It’s an interesting read for anyone whose writing encompasses military life or veterans, an increasingly common detail even in non-military writing.

How do you grab hold of issues that are unfolding as we speak? This post by Maud Newton is an example of some of the concrete daily actions people began undertaking in response to threats against human rights since the start of 2017. A couple other sources of info (or to support) include the ACLU (e.g., filing cases against unconstitutional legislation, lawyers manning airports during travel bans) and Women’s March.

Want one source for tracking the societal changes that have taken place, week by week, 2016-17? Amy Siskind has achieved near-legendary status for having started this weekly list. The link above takes you to a cumulative list, searchable by topic. You can also receive Amy’s updates by following her on Twitteror Facebook

I’ve followed the Committee to Protect Journalists in the (unfortunately) nearly 5 years since journalist Austin Tice went missing in Syria. The CPJ is admirable in providing a voice and conduit for information related to persecution of journalists around the world. This link takes you to a collection of 55 guides and checklists for safety and survival for journalists and photographers working in heated environments.

This article and others on the website for the Committee to Protect Journalists provides statistics, profiles, to the capture, release, and deaths of journalists, worldwide. Overall, the CPJ has been one of my leading sources for events and resources impacting journalists in the last decade. On Twitter: @pressfreedom

While writing has occasionally had me researching weaponry or forensics, I am in fact a strong advocate for gun safety and antiproliferation, so should provide a source for that as well.. Everytown is one source of information regarding the escalation in gun deaths in the U.S., particularly since the end of the ban on assault weapons in 2005.

While it’s not a topic I’m interested in writing about, I’m sure the current opioid epidemic has some writers interested to write authentically about drug risks. In clear terms, this post walks through the exact bodily processes from drug ingestion through the ways it can go wrong. All the details you’d need to know that get your character calling 911.

If you didn’t know there was an opioid epidemic or wanted further statistics, this recent Vox post suggests that, “in 2016, drug overdoses likely killed more Americans than the entire wars of Vietnam and Iraq.”

I loved the details of this piece on art restoration by Jane Rose at Mental Floss, which connected to my artist in Breathing Water and my museum display expert in “Jar of Teeth.” I can see writers riffing on these processes for characters in the arts, quirky concerns about a setting, or, dare we say, solving a crime.

In old cities and cultures, it can be hard to see beneath contemporary gloss and acknowledged history to find those remnants of more… textural elements of the past. This article is intriguing, that way. Victorian London your focus (it’s not mine)? Look for more on the site, as The Public Domain Review is a not-for-profit project “dedicated to the exploration of curious and compelling works from the history of art, literature, and ideas.”

In a year I spent focusing on subtle ticks of spoken language between characters moving through foreign countries, I found Dan Nosowitz’s piece at Atlas Obscura as a great springboard for noticing specific character linguistics. “In many places, you’d be laughed out of the building for calling it a ‘convenience store’. It’s a bodega. It’s a packie. It’s a party store. What you call the store on the corner says a lot about where you live.” He may be talking corner stores, but it’s great prod to work more specifically toward character linguistics.

Continuing on that thread, Kristen Radke’s piece at Electric Lithad me thinking about the way community stores, pubs, and other locals are such a key identifier for the characters we write. Kristen captures the nuance of this relationship, specific to identifying with one’s bodega, neighborhood to neighborhood, in NYC: “Bodegas represent so much a neighborhood’s mood and energy… They also become beacons of safety, sometimes the only place open and brightly lit late at night, and makeshift meeting places in a city with such limited community space. It’s a mark of belonging… ‘that place is going to see you through some shit.” Beyond literal insight to NYC, it had me wondering: what locals would my characters trust to ‘see them through some shit’?

In reading Anthony Marra’sTsar of Love and Techno, I was impressed with his subtle and deep understanding of Russia’s evolution, which went way beyond my views, even having been a huge fan of Eastern European and Russian lit from the 80s on. So, this list by Matt Staggs struck me as that kind of insight.

One of our favorite editions of Friday Links for Writers was the 3.14.14 edition that shared Quirky Research Sources for Writers. Whether writing a novel, a short story or researching a memoir or long form journalism, any of us who do research for our writing have a particular affection for the fascinating rabbit holes research leads us down.

You know what? A long holiday weekend (here in the States, at least) seems like a good day for Quirky Research Sources for Writers – Round 2.

And then make the most of this quirky set of research resources for writers. As always, share in the comments to let us know which links resounded for you, what kind of information you wish you could find more of, or share your own favorite links, including your own posts.

I took particular satisfaction in stumbling on this article as I’ve always had a linguistic curiosity in the origin of last names. My dad’s family name (Field) ironically has nearly the same meaning as my mom’s family name, Aho, which means “glade” or “forest clearing” in Finnish. Her mother’s maiden name, la Tendresse, is French for “a wave of affection.” For historic writers, the article touches on the history of when last names first arrived; for any writer, it’s creative fodder for character naming.

Fiona Quinn’sThrill Writing site is about the most comprehensive blog I’ve seen, sharing the ins and outs of forensic detail specifically for writers. Individual posts give everything from detecting trace evidence in fur or hair, to surviving in a desert.

Sad but true: war has touched many of our characters in current times, and begs to be portrayed with accuracy. Need to describe the path a fallen soldier takes, in being returned for burial? This Atlanticphoto story documents the dignified transfer of Pfc. Aaron Toppen, killed this month by friendly fire in Afghanistan, from soldiers in mourning on his FOB to graveside. Shared in all respect for the soldier lost, as I feel some hesitation in photographing private grief.

Conflict around the world — possibly in your setting — has created significant dangers for journalists. The Committee to Protect Journalists centralizes information on journalists missing or killed, and advocacy. This page: those killed in 2014.

While writing Breathing Water, we had a pilot-friend staying with us, and I couldn’t help but find the aeronautical maps he spread across the coffee table fascinating. Cuban MiGs had shot down civilian planes that flew out of Miami on a humanitarian (some say “spy”) mission and, as I followed the trail of stories, his aeronautical maps assigned different names to air space than land maps, and identified legal borders set by international treaties. Whatever your research motive, SkyVector is an interactive site for flight plotting.

While we’re on the subject of flight… Growing up in Michigan, even as a little kid, I recognized and knew the names of all our local birds, including the seasons they were present and absent. Huh. Would that be a detail of setting your character noticed? Here’s a central resource from the Audubon Society, with facts about bird species. Some include sound recordings.

Now that you’ve stocked the skies of your setting, how about the smells? In 3 manuscripts, I’ve found myself writing a foreign culture and one of the first things I turned to was cookbooks, to know the tastes and smells of native cuisine. Knowing the spices used in native cooking can give you a quick resource to adding scent details, as you can raid your grocer’s spice aisle and get samples firsthand. This link gives you a simple listing that groups spices for several national cuisines.

Overall, what is Friday Links for Writers? In my near-weekly column, I share the best links I’ve found with every range of writing and publishing advice, great reads and tools. For more, here are 3 ways to read more:

But… that loads dozens of posts. Here’s the best trick to search contents of all Friday Links: within the Links & Where to Find Metab, there is a listing of Friday Links. As you hover over the title of any post, the topics of included articles will display so you can select posts that interest you.

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How About You?

What are you working on this week? Does it have you following quirky research trail down the rabbit hole?

Share any questions you have, or advice and favorite links in the comments below.

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Celebrating the first days of summer writing at a French café. c. Elissa Field

Each week in Friday Links for Writers, I share links to resources I’ve found useful in the previous week, related to writing, editing and publishing. This week’s Friday Links may become a special thread within the ongoing column, as I’ve stumbled across a handful of quirky sources in recent weeks.

Readers researching a thriller may find a few of these links helpful, while others may like a couple historical resources. Considering the Irish setting of my WIP, the first 2 sources give a cheery nod to St. Patrick’s weekend. Less cheery but also linked to my own research, is the Committee for Protection of Journalists: sober tracking of dangers for journalists around the globe.

As always with Friday Links, let me know which links you find most interesting or ones you’d like to see more of. Have you stumbled across a quirky info source of your own? Feel free to add your own links in the comments. Have a great writing week!

Writer and historian Elizabeth Saundersshared this article with an awesome list and map providing the names and history of Ireland’s counties. Elizabeth always impresses me with her diligent research into genealogy and history about Quakers and Irish descent — check out her blog for more.

Let’s have a contest: how many times do you have to play this vid before you can actually hear clearly the words spoken by the native Irish? It’s an entertaining demonstration of Irish wit and sharp tongues, with the brief English translation onscreen, courtesy of the Irish Journal’s Daily Edge.

Irish, forgive me for shifting from the ole sod to GB, but another great link: Writing about the British Isles? No? You still have to check out this short audio clip from the BBC that takes you on a tour of various regions by accent. Useful for training your writerly ear, and entertaining to boot.

Write mystery or crime thrillers? As one with a familiarity with forensics and respect for the longstanding traditions in mystery writing, I thought this PBS special was a great perspective on the extent to which Sherlock Holmes both inspired and accurately reflects the true practices of forensic science.

Top 10 Handguns

Admit it. Your character plans to off somebody. This list is not the end-all (in fact, you’re better off with one of those illustrated encyclopedias of guns frequently on offer in the Barnes & Noble “bargain books” section), but this list is a quick illustrated summary of common handguns in the world. (This link has been disabled.)

Anyone setting a story in the northeast in a prior era might find this graphic and article by David Yanofsky interesting, as it maps the distance a traveler could cover in a single day in bands from 1800 to 1934.

Another intriguing tool for anyone writing in a prior era is this tool created for educators to explore historical events in perspective. Caveat: I haven’t tried this one, but a review of the resource on Edutopia (a respected site for educators) said the program is meant to be an expandable timeline of all of history. If you try it out, let us know how it works for you.

The links here reveal some of the writing priorities (or at least curiosities) that have come up in my recent writing. What kinds of research sources do you find yourself using? Or, what kind of information do you wish were available? Do you wonder about accurate clothing for a lost era or the sounds of television commercials that would have played in 1978? Or do you have a great research source to share?

Whatever your writing goals this week, best wishes to you!

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If you like this blog, be sure to subscribe using WordPress’s +follow option, the Bloglovin’ button or via email. I love to connect with like-minded readers and writers!